The 3-1/2-minute video tutorial of A Game of Thrones: The Board Game jasonobi uploaded to YouTube is one of the better user videos I've seen of this nature. He explains the extensive rules succinctly, plays the TV series' theme song in the background loud enough to enhance the tutorial's effect, but not so loud it cuts into the clarity of his voice over, and doesn't move or shake the camera to the point that I want to vomit out of my eyeballs like 85% of other YouTube users. Also, he pronounces the word "iron" like "eye-ron", which makes the Iron Throne sound even more regal and dramatic. My written version is never going to live up to those standards.

That's cool though. I'm sure I'll still get a trophy for participating.

A Game of Thrones: The Board Game begins at King Robert Baratheon's death and pans through the lands of Westeros as its remaining Great Houses prepare to battle for control of the Iron Throne. The 3 to 6 players representing various houses must employ warfare, diplomacy, and passionate rhetoric alike in the fight to place their sigil in the seat of power at King's Landing.

At the beginning of the game, players each receive an army of footmen, knights, siege engines, and ship units, plus a set of order tokens and other necessary components to station across the detailed map of Westeros serving as the board. They also take a deck of unique house cards representing important characters from A Song of Ice and Fire to use as leaders in battles against rival houses.

Game play progresses through 10 rounds, at the end of which the player who has staked the most areas housing castles or strongholds wins the Iron Throne. Throughout the rounds, if a player is able to secure 7 of these areas, s/he wins automatically, and everyone can pack up the Game of Thrones board game and move on to the Game of Thrones shot game portion of the evening.

Each of the 10 rounds of A Game of Thrones: The Board Game is also split into 3 phases. During these sessions, players must first manage special events and activities, then secretly assign their units orders and decide whom to trust, and finally reveal their orders, shattering alliances, inciting barbaric chaos, and stirring massive bloodshed. Ahhh, Westeros. It's always a party.